The quinolone antibiotic, sparfloxacin, also known as Zagam, has been linked to serious and sometimes life-threatening side effects, including liver toxicity and liver failure.

Sparfloxacin is a broad spectrum antibacterial drug belonging to the fluoroquinolone group of antibiotics and is used mainly in the treatment of lung infections like pneumonia, acute exacerbation of chronic bronchitis and eye infections. It was originally developed by Mylan but was withdrawn from the market in February 2001, primarily due to lack of sales.

One of the most commonly reported side effects of sparfloxacin is liver toxicity. Liver damage is not exclusive to sparfloxacin or other quinolone antibiotics, for a wide variety of medications can cause such liver problems.

Medical experts believe liver damage side effects are linked to the patient’s metabolic processing of the medication, which induces the reaction in some and not others. Quinolones are steadily becoming the most commonly named antibiotic group in liver damage injury reports to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), causing great concern to the medical community.

Study Links Quinolone Antibiotics To Liver Damage

Quinolone antibiotics have had the medical community concerned over liver toxicity for years, beginning in June 1999, when the FDA issue a public health warning stating that certain quinolone drugs could increase the chances of liver damage.

From 1997 to 2010, around 2,500 quinolone deaths were reported to the FDA’s Adverse Events Reporting System (AERS), with an additional 45,000 injury reports submitted during that time.

In one study conducted by Canadian researchers, several cases of quinolone liver damage were found in a population of elderly patients. The purpose of this study was to observe the side effects of commonly used quinolone drugs, and to determine if there was a greater likelihood of acute liver damage.

According to the authors, 2.86 million quinolone cases were observed, and 172 patients were admitted to the hospital for liver damage, with most of them having to be readmitted for residual side effects.

While sparfloxacin was not used in this study, medical experts point out that lesser used quinolones may also carry the same side effects due to being a part of the same pharmaceutical family.

To note, the authors point out that their study did not conclusively prove that quinolones cause liver damage. Their patient population was limited, only showing that quinolone liver damage was possible in elderly patients.

Symptoms of Liver Failure

Quinolone liver injury often happens rapidly, and the degree of symptoms can vary from severe to not present at all. Many of the symptoms may also indicate other, much less serious issues.

According to the Mayo Clinic, the most common symptoms of liver damage include “yellow skin and eyes (which is jaundice), abdominal swelling and/or pain, legs and ankles that are swollen, dark urine, skin that itches, bowel movements which are pale or bloody, nausea/vomiting, a decrease in appetite, propensity to easily bruise and chronic fatigue.”

The National Library of Medicine is quick to point out that most injuries occur within the first month of taking a quinolone. Unfortunately, the type of fluoroquinolones that are most commonly connected to liver damage are also the most widely prescribed.